League of What The Hell They Turned Into Kids
by Vievin
Summary: Aka what happens when Time gets confused? Natural answer: It goes wrong. Horribly. And now the League of Legends has to deal with the child versions of Azir, Ekko, Jinx, Sejuani, Soraka and Zilean! Rating K for mild language.
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: Nothing here is my own work, except the plot. If this changes, I'll be starting that chapter with "This X thing is my property and I'll cut your head off if you steal it", I promise. Until then, no disclaimers. They're annoying as Hell. Also, I don't plan on naming chapters. I have the imagination of a medium size stainless steel fork.**

 **Light trigger warning: Minor character death... like, as death as people die in League matches. Not really. Also, crappily explained magic. And a fed as hell Azir. Trigger warnings will always be posted before the chapter they are in.**

 **Oh, before I forget. This story takes place in an universe where the League of Legends wasn't banished and continues to operate as normal. So... this is technically AU. But I'm keeping everything else as close to canon as possible (within the boundaries of** absolutely nothing canon having been released about them since forever **, so expect a ton of headcanons and made-up stuff). Also, this fic was inspired by League of Kids by** **LycanthropeSpirit (I wanted to use this tiiiiitle), check him/her out, but aside from champions as kids, nothing is related to his/her story.**

 **Enjoy this chapter and don't forget to review!**

 **lll**

It was a rather peaceful day on the Summoners' Rift. Sunshine, rainbows and bloodshed, as Janna commented before she lunged into the battle. Her team was heavily losing, already two members down and she had used up all her abilities to try and turn the tide, her summoner informed her that his own spells needed to cool down for about two minutes. Now she only had the tiny gusts of wind beside her, and she wasn't even remotely surprised when a sand spear pierced her heart.

The enemy mage, Azir had done exceptionally this match, he was already equipped with several items that enhanced his damage. He was basically harvesting the battlefield now, late in the game. Janna was watching the outcome of the fight through a black-and-white crystal ball now, being confined to her team's fountain until her wounds healed, and she didn't like what she was seeing.

They had lost the fight, that was obvious. Nobody even died from the team, even that squishy healer Soraka. This wasn't true of three of her teammates: Caitlyn, Tahm Kench and Malphite were sitting beside her, watching their sole living partner, Ekko. He had kept his ultimate ability, Chronobreak until the last second, but decided to unleash it now on the grouped enemy team who didn't have more than a hundred hitpoints per champion, only Sejuani was relatively healthy, having _two_ hundred health. Finally, Ekko Chronobroke into the enemy team, but anticipating the move, Zilean put protective runes around their marksman, Jinx while Soraka sent a prayer to the stars - _wait, she had just used her Wish! It shouldn't be up!_ \- and while Jinx's time turned back to the point she was healthy again. Azir simply assassinated The Boy Who Apparently Couldn't Shatter Time Enough To Matter, then with the expense of a few teammates, they took the base. Not Happy End, but Janna had seen several scenes like this...

Except now she didn't. Later, she figured it out it was all because everything happened in the same shard of moment. While the times were turned back and stars beaconed to the ground - which they shouldn't have been able to do in the first place - Time got confused. Right now, all she saw was a huge explosion as soon as Ekko landed, right in the enemy team, smoke covered the entire battlefield. Suddenly, she felt the binding of her summoner release, even though their Nexus was unharmed, and her vision turned colourful again. Her heart fell: the smoke was _purple_. Not black or grey, like ordinary smoke. Purple, _magic_ smoke. And magic smoke being present usually meant something went seriously wrong. A crowd of summoners had already stood around the now dissipating smoke, she elbowed her way through - Ekko was one of her best friends, after all. What she saw was way beyond her imagination.

In the dust, six champions laid unconsciously. _Six children_.


	2. The Kids are sorted out

**Author's Notes moved to the end of the chapter! Warning: excess amounts of sass.**

 **Chapter I: The Kids are sorted out**

Ashe, the Frost Archer stared at the six beds lined up in the infirmary, in each rested a child.

A boy with dark brown skin, his white hair unkempt and right hand bruised, both stained with oil.

A pale girl with a peaceful smile even as she slept, her black hair spreading gently out on the pillow.

A boy with short, black hair and a few odd wrinkles around his eyes, hands clenched around nothing.

A girl with semi-long pink hair, she seemed to be the youngest of them at around six years, seven at max.

A boy with sand-brown, well groomed hair, well-tanned skin and noble, strong features, he looked older than his probable actual age.

A girl with shoulder-reaching, thin grey hair and tens of scars marren on her face and arms, some as fresh as a day's time.

The children aged between six and ten, though Ashe couldn't distinguish their faces for dear life. Something about her being bad with children, one of the reasons she and Tryndamere decided not to have any children. Their names were Ekko, Soraka, Zilean, Jinx, Azir and Sejuani.

She knew in all honesty, she shouldn't have been surprised in a League filled with fire-throwing nine year olds, mushroom-planting cute satans, the spirits of Death and various animals, plants and undead. She just couldn't help it.

The first strange occurrence was Summoner Ethan Hail approaching her and not beginning with boasting about the Winter's Claw - initially the boy's patriotism amused her, now it was simply irritating - instead asking her to come to the infirmary on an urgent matter. When she entered, Sivir, Vi and Caitlyn were already there. Aurelion Sol was floating outside the window, seeming mildly bored, but given his default state - bored out of his mind and highly irritable - it was certainly an improvement. When she was explained the situation, she was shocked. Okay, things malfunctioned pretty often on the Fields of Justice, the fault on the summoners' behalf mostly, but this was far beyond a bug or whatever the summoners called these malfunctions. Six champions were turned into _children_ , for Avarosa's sake!

"And why were we called here? You could've just announced it for everyone. I have business to attend to, y'know", Sivir frowned, clearly uninterested. Well, it wasn't her nemesis and enemy general who just got incapacitated. Before High Councilor Kolminye - holy Avarosa, she was here personally, which meant things were even more serious than she'd thought - could answer, Vi chimed in.

"And what's gonna happen to these kiddos? Somebody's gotta take care of 'em and we don't exactly have a nursery in the Institute." The High Councilor smiled, though it didn't reach her eyes.

"You just answered each other's question..." It took a few seconds as they processed the information, but they said in unison:

"No way!"

 **lll**

Soraka awoke to the sound of yelling and the feeling of hate. She looked around with the haziness of sleep. She was in a white room filled with cabinets, strange machines and beds... Wait, there is no white-painted room in or near the grove where she'd been living after her maker had sent her to Runeterra! She looked around frantically and froze as she spotted several people in the far corner. There were several robed figures as well as four strangely dressed women, the arguing and anger came from their direction. One had a funny hat and a gun, one had odd metal gloves, one had a cross-shaped weapon and a metal headband and finally, an archer. All of them, except the crossblade-wearer had a child at their side, and a black-haired boy was wandering about the room. But there was one more participant and when she looked out of the window, her eyes widened.

"L-lord Aurelion S-Sol!", she stammered, hastely kneeling down, but the celestial dragon paid no heed to her, continuing to argue with a golden-robed woman, clearly irritated.

"As I said, I will not take her. I'm too busy doing Targon's stupid errands to nurse a kid. I did leave her on Runeterra for a reason." The woman, who seemed to be the highest ranking amongst the robed people, shook her head, anger flared from her direction with an intensity Soraka trembled from.

"And now you must take her with you. She needs to stay with a champion until we find out a way to transform her back, and you're the most suitable, having been her guardian for centuries." Soraka suddenly realized they are talking about her. Transform back... Had she changed? She glanced at a nearby mirror, but found no alterations. Her straight, rich black hair gently waved down to her heels, her amber eyes bore centuries' depth and her face features remained gentle. Even her swirling tattoos were in their place, marking her as a celestial. Aurelion Sol bellowed, his ferocity made Soraka shudder. She was thankful for this emotion having never been directed towards her. She'd seen the victims of his rage often enough... or rather their remains.

"I will not take her! This is my final word." With that, he turned and flew away, soon only glinting like a star in the distance. Soraka's heart fell. His maker doesn't want her anymore... He abandoned her again, like he did a few years ago when he thrust her upon Runeterra and just left. She felt tears running down her face, covering her eyes with both of her hands to somehow stop them. Suddenly she felt a hand on her shoulder: it was the black-haired boy. He looked a bit odd, with tiny wrinkles around his eyes, but she didn't mind it, he was still pretty. She felt concern from his direction.

"Don't worry", he said. "I'm also wanted by nobody... They say we were brought ahead of time. But they said these people", he pointed at the strangely-dressed women, "will take us. I hope so... They said my family is long dead and I only have an armoured bear for enemy." Soraka felt his sorrow and her tears almost resumed, having stopped at his sort-of consolation. She didn't know which was worse, having your family leave you or them being dead, but she knew both are bad. She suddenly hugged the boy, channeling energy into him that soothed his emotions. He hesitated for a few moments, then hugged back.

"My name is Zilean", he said after they disengaged from each other's embrace, somewhat awkwardly.

"I'm Soraka, a celestial", she smiled, wiping the last remnants of tears fom her face. Suddenly she felt a sudden spike in the anger present in the room since she's woken up. She looked at the white-haired archer who emitted the emotion, currently gesturing towards the grey-haired, pale girl who was standing beside her, expression indifferent, the only feature that betrayed anything was the tight line of her mouth. But Soraka was no fool, she sensed the fear and defiance radiating from her.

(POV switch - Vi)

"I have my hands full of her! Take them yourself! You've got your boyfriend, haven't you, Sheriff?" Damn, Ashe was mad. She was usually referring Cupcake by her name. Also, mentioning Jayce was a low blow, he wasn't even here.

"Thank you, but we've got the two of them! Just imagine the press we will have for taking in two criminals!" The two 'criminals' were currently hanging on her, she was desperately trying to peel them off, but no avail. Are kids always this clingy?

"And me? Sejuani is my enemy, for Avarosa's sake! The general of the enemy army, to be exact. I can imagine that will get me all popular with the rest of Avarosans! I suck at parenting anyways."

"How do you know if you've never had children?" Cupcake lifted an eyebrow. Fair point.

"Have you ever accidentally set a kid on fire?" Little Sejuani pressed her lips even tighter together, but Ashe didn't seem to notice.

"...What?!", she bellowed.

Suddenly Sivir sighed, placing her hands on Zilean's and Soraka's shoulder.

"Fine, I'll take the lot." Everyone just looked at her, astonished. This was... unexpected.

"What? I can be nice sometimes. What do you think I am, a desert dragoness who just hoards the money and spits fire at everyone that comes near me? Though, _that_ would be hella cool", she put her hand on her chin. Ugh, no, thanks, two dragons in the League are two too much, she thought.

"I like dragons", Zilean chimed in quietly. Don't give her ideas! Sivir grinned, ruffling his hair.

"That's the spirit! Now, if nobody objects - and if anyone does, I don't care - I'm gone. Let us go, dragonlings!" She snapped her fingers and turned, flipping her hair unto her back from her shoulder, adjusted the headband with a twitch of her head and marched out, the kids following her. When she stepped out on the door, the summoners closest to her instinctly stepped away not to get hit by her invisible cape made of pure sass. Damn it, that woman was something. Cupcake sighed, pinching her nose bridge.

"At least we have two less children to worry about. But what about them?" She glanced at Ekko and Jinx who were still on her shoulders despite her best efforts. Jinx was in the middle of some story, and Vi's heart clenched when she remembered their first encounter...

 **lll**

 **Dumm dumm, cliffhanger! I was originally going to include the flashback, but then I realized this chapter is already way too long, thank you very much. That's about trying to keep chapters short... Though the previous one was really short because it wasn't even a chapter, more like some prologue-thingy. I'll adjust the chapter names to reflect that. Also, a few notes on the kids' appearance and time travel thingy:**

 **For Soraka, I actually decided on using her Divine skin because anyone who took the bother to read her lore learnt that she wasn't born with purple skin and hooves and whatnot. Riot explicitly stated that the Divine skin resembles her pre-falling state, I just tweaked a bit with it (lengthening the hair, palening the skin and making her eyes the same colour as they are on her current form, just to make a her bit more exotic). It's also important to note that Aurelion Sol made her and then as Targon imprisoned him, he dumped her on Runeterra because she was in his way and he wanted to get her out of harm's way. TLDR: Sol isn't a complete dick. ...About this. Right now in the story she's about three or four hundred years old but will act a bit childish because *WARNING: magic humbug* she isn't a human but a celestial, therefore was born a bit older than human infants. Also, when she grows up she is supposed to be about two meter few centimeters (ugh, seven feet?) tall, so it's natural she's a tiny bit more childish than the rest of the kids, not even calculating in that celestials are supposed to become fully grown after a couple thousand years. Also, she can sense others' emotions.**

 **For Azir, his face was never revealed, so I decided on him having 'noble' features (imagine it however you want) and the kind of not-really-blonde-but-not-really-brown-either hair colour that I simplified to "sand". I was going to go auburn because his descendant, Sivir had it but that colour sucks on boys. Sand is much hotter, thank you very much.**

 **For Sejuani, I actually altered her appearance with the scars. Her hair is grey because *WARNING: more magic humbug* she is Serylda's descendant so she was born with dark grey hair exclusive to the Three Sisters' descendants, but because she was continually exposing herself (see: her lore) to the magic-imbued Freljordian winter, her hair had slowly started to change white. She's in the middle of the process now. She's shit-scared right now because... Almost slipped. No spoilers, duh. Though I would be scared if my guardian admitted to accidentally setting fire to another kid... This thing came to me on the fly and it just sounded so funny I had to put it in. Don't worry, Sejuani will exit the story alive because then I would need to raise rating to M.**

 **For Zilean, I made the wrinkles because... Hah, fooled you, no magic humbug. He was born like that. That's all. Also, black hair because black hair is hot and Riot never said anything otherwise.**

 **Nothing special about Ekko. The oil is there because he likes to tinker. Duh.**

 **I won't spoil Jinx, but don't worry, half of the things about her will be explained in the next chapter that is already done, I just need to type it in and make a few minor adjustments. Also, this fic contains JaycexCaitlyn (sorry, ViCait fans. That ship is my NOTP) and following canon, TryndamerexAshe.**

 **Holy hell, AN is becoming longer than the chapter itself... I'll be going then. Don't forget to review and/or follow! Bye until next chapter!**


	3. The Kids are sorted out Part Two

**Author's Notes and comment replies have been moved at the end of the chapter.**

 **Warnings: A lot of made-up stuff. I'm not joking. Also minor language, not from the minors though. Extra warning: My jokes.**

 **Chapter II: The Kids Are Sorted Out Part Two**

 _~Flashback~_

Jinx had been the first to wake up, yawning and rubbing her eyes with her fists. She looked around, looking disoriented. Vi couldn't blame her for that. After all, she did wake up in a place she'd never been to. But as the pink-haired girl glanced around the room, she immediately locked eyes with herself, both pairs of sky blue orbs widened in surprise.

Vi had always remembered Jinx as he scrawny girl with her madly glowing pink eyes and flapping electric blue braids who wore more weapons than clothes. She never thought of... this. A sweet-smiled little kiddo with semi-short, dirty pink hair having a life on its own and blue eyes filled with wonder. She'd always joke around their mismatching colours, never taking anything seriously. Well, now she can't complain, they both have the exact same shade of hair and eyes. Well, Vi thought, it's weird. Scrap that, it's fucking creepy.

 _(POV switch - Caitlyn)_

Suddenly she jumped out of the bed and ran straight at Vi with a beaming smile, wrapping her arms around her neck. Caitlyn was mildly impressed at her jumping skills and highly alarmed at her advance to her partner. What if she still had her memories? Was she trying to kill her nemesis? She moved to draw her rifle but Jinx just continued hugging Vi.  
"Violet!", she shouted excitedly. "I thought I'd never see you again! And how come you look this tall? What happened to you?" Violet? 'See you again'? Caitlyn looked at Vi who was just as astonished as her, unsure what to answer. She finally decided to be honest.

"Whoa, wait, kiddo. What do you mean?" The would-be criminal's face faltered.  
"Are you saying you don't remember me, Violet? Or..." Her expression changed to one of horror. "Are you not Violet? My d'rest lil sis?" Caitlyn couldn't hold back an amused snort. Vi being Jinx's sister was new, but _younger_ sister? That midget was older than her partner? Vi sighed and knelt down, placing the child on the floor. She looked disturbed.  
"Listen, kiddo. You may or may not be my sister. I don't remember anything of my childhood… Sorry" Jinx frowned, clearly thinking deeply about something.  
"But how? You're s'posed be like, five. I'm seven now." Vi looked certainly awkward. Caitlyn felt a surge of sympathy. Choice one, she tells a lie, but Jinx would definitely spot it. From what she knew from chasing her for many years, the madwoman - madkid? - was frighteningly smart. Choice two, she says nothing, but Jinx would most likely nag her until she told her. Choice three, she tells it honestly, but that would probably be too much for her to bear. She's not that smart. She understood the struggle.  
"You grew up and all, but you were accidentally changed into a kid. Or something like that. Even I don't really get it. Magic stuff and all." Jinx blinked.  
"Woah. Really?" Caitlyn raised an eyebrow, she didn't expect the ex(pre?)-criminal to be so accepting. But before she could speak up, Jinx went on.  
"That means I got to grow up as well! Did I grow as tall as you? And was I this cool?" Piltover's Finest exchanged a quick glance. Should they tell her she has become a criminal? How would she react? Luckily they were saved by Ekko who had just woke up.

"Ekkooooooo!", Jinx basically shrieked, almost knocking over the boy. "Guess what! We were grown ups and then some magic thingy changed us back into kids! But Violet didn't! See, see!" Caitlyn held back a chuckle as the poor timewinder was dragged to Vi. Ekko's mouth hung agape as he saw her.  
"Woah! Violet!", he said, amazed. "How are you this tall? Did you suddenly grow up or what? But then why aren't you grown up as well, Jasmine? You're always together." Jinx - Jasmine - huffed and tackled him.  
"Did you even listen to me? We all grew up, but we two got changed back to kids! But Violet said we will be changed back to adults! And then we can continue the gang and you can invent that timeturner stuff you were always dreaming about! And I can make cool weapons! And Violet, you will always be safe", she hugged her sister's legs, her sky blue eyes - it suddenly occurred to Caitlyn that Jinx's colours matched Vi's now - beaming with trust and happiness. Caitlyn saw the guilt in Vi's eyes as she answered.  
"Hey, that gang is no more..." That was technically true, because the gang Ekko had at the moment he remembered last was most likely gone, but it was still a lie. "W-we joined the cops in Piltover to beat up the bad guys." Jinx looked enthusiastic.  
"Is it true that in Piltover people call cops heroes? Then were we actual heroes? Do you hear that, Ekko?! We were official heroes!", she shrieked, waking up every child that hadn't woken up from her earlier yelling, save for Soraka. Caitlyn sighed.  
"Jinx- I mean Jasmine, be quiet. You're waking everyone." The girl looked up to her.  
"Are you also a cop, hat lady?" Caitlyn was slightly taken aback by hearing her old nickname. Did Jinx remember something after all or did she just re-invent the nickname?  
"Well, yes, actually. I'm the Sheriff of Piltover, leading the entire Piltovian Police." Jasmine's eyes widened.  
"Really? Are you the head cop? Then is Violet and me depu... depi... subhead cops? And Ekko?" Caitlyn bit her lip. What should she say? She's always been good at lies.  
"Yes, you are my deputies", she smiled. "But you can't go on patrol or chase criminals until your adult selves are back." Jasmine just pouted and turned back hugging her legs. Then the black haired boy, who turned out to be Zilean, spoke.

"E-excuse me? Where is my family?" They looked at him, slightly awkward. In fact, they knew next to nothing about Zilean except for that he came from a city named Urtistan that had been destroyed and he suffered from an illness not even Caitlyn could pronounce that randomly timetraveled him. Finally High Councilor Vessaria Kolminye spoke in her ha

harsh, brutal honesty.  
"You were brought ahead of your time. The family and friends you know are long dead. Your city is destroyed." The boy looked shocked and Caitlyn shot a scornful look at Kolminye. _Did she absolutely have to tell it in the most brutal way she could?_ Astonishingly, Zilean didn't look too confused, only sad at the loss of his loved ones. More surprising, he seemed to understand what had happened. Well, he had always been obsessed with time, but even at this young age?  
"And if I have no one, where will I stay?", he asked then. Good point.  
"Every child must live with a champion until we figure out how to turn them back to ensure their safety and possibly invoke memories", Kolminye chimed in. Caitlyn shrugged.  
"This means he will go to you, Ashe. You've always wanted a child with Tryndamere, haven't you?" The Frost Archer shook her head.  
"I don't even want this one", she pointed at Sejuani who seemed unimpressed. "I'm bad with kids. Why won't you take him instead?"  
"Guys, Soraka has woken up", Sivir pointed out.  
 _~Flashback end~_

Caitlyn idly wondered as Ashe and Sejuani got prepared to leave. A set of basic clothes conjured by high-ranking summoners, basic instructions about school and other necessities for her age, and a fake backstory. Jinx and Sejuani were the only ones who got false identities - as High Councilor Kolminye was "concerned about the possibly negative effect on their treatment in a territory previously hostile" - and after a lengthy discussion, they decided against hiding Ekko's as well, because he wasn't known in Piltover. Caitlyn watched the ice-haired pair disappear and actually felt a little concerned. During the whole ordeal, Ashe promptly ignored Sejuani, talking about her as a nuisance as if she wasn't there. The girl hadn't said more than two words herself, though it must have been because the new environment frightened her. Now she had to concern herself with the two children assigned to her. She turned to Vi and stifled a laugh. Both kids were on her partner's back, despite the latter's desperate orders.

"Ekko, Jasmine", she said, authority clear in her voice. "Stop tormenting Vi. We're leaving soon."

"To Piltover?", Ekko asked, wonder evident in his voice. His smile grew to a wide grin at Caitlyn's nod.

"I can't wait", Jinx said, for once not shouting while she bounced around. Caitlyn just smiled. _Me neither._

 **lll**

 **And this is it! I wrote this chapter a long while ago, but decided to scrap it and begin anew. Then I was distracted by LoL, WoW and exams, ran into a writer's block once, then twice, put in a timeline warp, then I deleted it, realized the new chapter is a disaster in itself (that was what gave me the writer's blocks) and returned to the original chapter. Added a few things like grammar errors on the kids' side and the part after the flashback aaand here you go. Don't worry, he next update will come faster because I have the majority of next chapter already. Ooor much slower because I'm really hooked into WoW.**

 **On other news, next chapter we're following Sejuani, Ashe and Tryndamere on their new life! I'll try to keep it lightweight, but expect some heavy stuff. Good news, I have the Freljord arc done in my mind (like, what happens when) and long-time plot is ready too! No spoilers though :P More news: I changed the title of the story. The original title was League of Oh Shit They Turned Into Kids, but I wasn't sure is including a curse word at the very title wouldn't get the story deleted. Oh Hell, however, sounded really lame.**

 **Comment replies:**

 **Jactus Cack - Bang Bang: Nope! It's an entirely different story. I only got the inspiration from there.**

 **Toaneo07 Ver2.0: Well, he does run a gang and I doubt he asks nicely for foor and technology and whatnot. In my headcanon he also does things like vandalism and robbery, occassionally murder like in the comics, so yeah, technically he is a criminal. Alsoo, the Sheriff's talking about him, for her a litterer is a criminal too :P**

 **PS If you were wondering, Zilean is (well, was. Or will) suffering from chrono-displasia that un-anchored him from the current timeline.**


	4. Sejuani VS Ashe - Part One

Sejuani walked silently behind her new guardian, Ashe. The woman hadn't even spared her a glance since she first woke up and spoke about her as if she was an enemy. "The general of the enemy army, to be exact", she said. This brought a small smile to Sejuani's face. The seer was right then... She did survive to be an adult and even became a general. This time traveling thing was confusing thought. She was in her tent, tending to the fire, then she woke up in a strange room and with even stranger people. She did what her grandmother had told her long before about unfamiliar places and people: kept silent, not looking anyone in the eyes, and observed. She had gathered that she was part of an organization, as well as a general, and a 'bug' turned her back to a child. This is going to be difficult to survive... She clenched her fist with determination, biting her lip when one of her newest wounds almost started bleeding again. She is going to get through and be the leader once again.

Lost in her thoughts, she didn't notice Ashe stopping and almost bumped into the woman. Peeking out from behind her legs, Sejuani noticed a large white frame with a strange device next to it. With a few sparkles flying out of it, the frame suddenly clattered to life and a water-like membrane filled the space between the stone. Without as much as a glance, Ashe stepped through and disappeared, the surface leaving a few ripples. Sejuani took a deep breath. _I have to do this. I don't have a choice. I will survive. I will survive!_ With a silent roar and keeping her eyes clenched shut, she charged through. The surface even felt like water and the girl broke through easily, just to meet no resistance. She stopped when she bumped into something quite hard, and opened her eyes. She gasped in shock: it was the Freljord.

There was no mistaking it. The crispness of the air, the snow under her feet and slowly falling from the sky, the forest-covered mountains in the distance... It was her home. She marveled for a few moments, but her happiness quickly turned into dread as she realize what - who - she bumped into. Ashe turned around with a scowl on her face, rage on her features. Sejuani's heart sank. 'Set a kid on fire' was all that echoed in her mind. The general will surely kill her now...

"Watch where you're going," was all the woman said. "Stop running like a madman." She was staring at her now, but Sejuani turned her eyes at the ground, enduring the gaze defiantly. _Keep silent. Don't look her in the eyes. Observe._ Ashe had fine leather boots, but it wasn't of any animal she knew in the Freljord. It wouldn't do much to protect her from iron spikes or the cold. She also wore golden-coloured leg bracers, which were quite good-looking, but not very practical. She wore her hair long, Sejuani noted as the woman turned around to speak to a person standing there. It could get caught in anything and cause her death. She touched her own, grey hair and wondered whether it will get as wonderfullly white as Ashe's. _Don't admire her. She's the enemy._ She tore her eyes away from the long, snow-coloured strands and turned her attention to the conversation the two adults were having.

"...and since she's from the Freljord, I was charged with taking care of her," Ashe said. She exuded an aura of confidence, her every movement was calculated and regal, and her lie was smooth as a baby boar's fur. Sejuani felt jealous. The man nodded, bowing.

"I see, Your Majesty. I will call for a carriage immediately." Sejuani's eyes widened as the woman nodded. She was the queen? That... actually explained a lot of things. She gulped as she realized her new situation. The general of one faction, helpless, captured by the leader of the other. Ashe will definitely kill her as soon as she gets the chance to make it look like an accident. She had to stay vigilant. _Keep silent. Don't look anyone in the eyes. Observe._ This was her mantra as the carriage finally arrived, covered in fine silk and drawn by two thick-furred horses. As she climbed in after Ashe, she sat in a corner, hugging her knees and fixing her gaze on the window.

* * *

Ashe sat silently as she watched Sejuani quietly. She honestly didn't understand her. The kid refused to meet her eyes and didn't say a single word, not even apologizing when she had run into Ashe. Why she suddenly charged at her back at the portal was beyond the woman. Avarosa help her... She was bad with children as it was, but this was special. Sejuani was the general of the enemy army. She was just a kid right now, though, but next to nothing was known about Sejuani's past. She was well aware that her memories, just as every champion's, were stored in the Great Archive, but for obvious reasons she wasn't allowed access to the files. She could have been a mass murderer by ten for all she knew, but now Sejuani's pose was... fearful. She had pulled her knees up and now was clinging to them for dear life, staring out of the carriage's window taking them to Rakelstake. Thinking back, Ashe felt herself flush with embarrassment, and for once she was glad Sejuani wasn't willing to even look at her face. She must have made a bad first impression... Not like it mattered. Kid or not, Sejuani was the opposing general and when the summoners figure out how to change her back, they will go back to being enemies. "Do not get attached," High Councilor Kolminye had said. That being said, the silence was getting to her and being friendly, at least now, wouldn't hurt.

"We're going to Rakelstake, which is the capital of Avarosan Freljord. It's where the Three Sisters took their vow to protect the Freljord millenia ago. Have you heard of the Three Sisters?" she asked with a fake smile on her face, but Sejuani didn't answer. The only sign that she had even heard the Avarosan was a slight twitch when Ashe broke the silence, and she slightly shifted at the question, her gaze sliding to her own feet from the window. Well, that was off-putting, to say the least. Suddenly, however, the girl's head moved in a curt nod, gripping her legs tighter. Ashe furrowed her brows, had Sejuani mute when she was young? No, she remembered her speaking a few words back at the Institute, but she was quiet and withdrawn otherwise. She found her eyes sliding over the scars marring the arms, hands and even face of the young girl. She must have had a difficult life, maybe even had been abused. Ashe found herself clenching her fists. No child should be harmed by their own kin, ever. She silently promised the silent, faintly trembling girl to be the best parent she can be. _Even if..._ Her hand unconsciously slid over her flat stomach and she sighed, averting her eyes. It doesn't matter. She will power through this, and she knew she had help, faintly blushing when she thought of Tryndamere. As she was thinking, she was surprised when the carriage stopped. They're home already? Looking outside, she saw the metal fence frosting over and smiled.

"Come," she said and hopped off the carriage. Sejuani wordlessly followed, but stopped as she noticed the mansion. In her defense, it was huge. She had it built a couple years ago when she married Tryndamere to ally his tribe with the Avarosan. It had multiple wings, a war room and even an inside bathhouse. Of course, it was only to flaunt her people's wealth in front of her spouse, so after the joined war efforts began, most of the mansion went unused. But the sheer size seemed to terrify Sejuani, and she stood with her linen-shoed feet rooted in the snow. Despite wearing only a shirt and pants, both thin and flimsy as it can be expected from the Institute, the girl didn't seem to be bothered by the cold. Focus, Ashe. Be kind.

"This is my house," she said, looking at the still-petrified Sejuani, her only answer was a slight shift of the legs, but at this point she didn't expect a verbal answer. "Don't worry, it's smaller than it looks, and it's nice warm. Let's go inside."

* * *

Sejuani felt sick as she entered the house. She was used to the cold, so the heat suffocated her. But she showed no sign of weakness and pushed on, following Ashe into a room that had many strange objects. A fireless lamp on the ceiling, a black canvas on a table, or the small stick-like thing - a "remote" - the woman was currently holding.

"If you push this button, the TV will turn on. You can change channels or volume with this and this," she explained and Sejuani tried to memorize it, but her head was still reeling with all the new sensations and things, it was as if her senses went into overdrive. She barely noticed when the remote was pushed into her hand and Ashe left to cook a meal. She climbed onto the "couch" and pushed the button that Ashe said will "turn on the TV", whatever that meant. The black canvas suddenly changed colours into... a man talking? Sejuani barely understood anything he was saying, but apparently something went bad somewhere and four "champions" got "de-aged", another two going missing. She wondered what kind of warriors were they that they got taken down at once. They were weak... But she won't be. There were other news of things happening in faraway places she hadn't even heard of, she wondered how they transport information so fast. Then a different thing began, talking about monstrous creatures in a place called Shurima, but she didn't care much. She still watched it though.

About half an hour later, she noticed with a start that she was falling asleep. The combination of the unspiritly heat and the comfort of this place was getting to her and the exhaustion of the rapid progression of events caught up fast. _No! I must stay vigilant_ , she thought. _I'm in the house of the enemy. She is probably waiting for me to drop my guard and then assassinate me. I need a weapon to defend myself, now._ She sat up - she didn't remember when she had laid down on the couch - and looked around for any object that looked capable of inflicting serious harm. She was pleased when she soon discovered a glass full of pencils. Some of them was sharpened enough to cause serious harm. She smiled and took the two sharpest, holding one in each hand. Satisfied with the weapons, she went back and resumed watching the TV - this time, the canvas showed drawn figures with strange headbands doing magic with their hands and fighting evil for the sake of their nation. She was so engrossed with the show, she completely forgot anything else.

When Ashe was done with the stew she'd cooked, she suddenly remembered her little charge. For the past hour, Sejuani had been very quiet... Walking into the living room, she couldn't help but smile at the sight of the ten-year-old curling up on the coach, asleep. She was even drooling a little, and she grasped pencils with both of her hands. _She was probably trying to draw._ Looking at the TV, she rolled her eyes at the Ionian cartoon and tiptoing over, turned off the TV. Sejuani stirred a little, but soon fell back into her deep sleep. Ashe reached out, almost touching her matted grey hair, but stopped before her fingers could reach the sleeping girl. Something told her that Sejuani wouldn't take being touched well if she woke up. Ashe sighed, retrieving a blanket from a guest room instead. The couple often received visitors, so they kept most guest rooms clean and ready for use. When she laid the light blue plaid over her, the child mumbled something and grabbed the blanket, burying her nose in the soft material. Ashe smiled at the sight before going back to tend to the stew. After all that had happened, Sejuani deserved the rest.

* * *

 **A/N: I would like to say I'm sorry, but I'm a terrible writer in the sense that I often abandon stories. So always consider all my stuff on hiatus, even if I update. *shrug* Anyways, here you go.**


	5. Azir, Soraka, Zilean VS Sivir - Part One

Soraka didn't know whether to feel amazed or frightened. Everything here was so new to her, from the bed she'd woken up in to the portal standing in front of her. She'd seen enough of them when still traveling with her maker to immediately recognize the rippling membrane of interdimensional travel. She smiled at the countless memories of traveling with her maker, although it still stung that he had abandoned her. Again. Beside her, Zilean also seemed to marvel at the portal, but the sand-haired boy just clung to their new guardian's side uneasily, Soraka could feel the anxiety radiating from him. Azir and Sivir, she recalled their names. Back at the grove she didn't have many names to keep track of, only hers and some people who had come to her for healing.

"Okay dragonlings," Sivir's voice suddenly snapped her out of her thoughts, "this is a portal. It leads straight to Shurima, just outside Nashramae. We'll go straight to the royal palace and sort things out." Soraka didn't miss the way Azir's eyes narrowed. Sivir sighed and ran a hand through her hair. "C'mon, let's go." Soraka stepped closer to the portal, studying it. It seemed stable enough, but she still felt apprehension before she reached a hand out, stopping just before reaching the membrane. She knew little of this world, what if the area was dangerous? Or if she was disliked there? Instinctively looking at her marks, she swallowed thickly. However, the other three were still waiting, the boys paralyzed with anxiety and fear and Sivir standing there, regarding the children from behind. Guess I have to be the first. With her head held high, she took a step forward, the cool feeling of the water-like mend between dimensions touching her skin with comforting familiarity. _I am a celestial. I was made and raised by Aurelion Sol, lord of all. I have nothing to fear._

The heat, sunlight and sand immediately assaulted her senses as she arrived. The contrast between the cool room and the desert was so stark she couldn't move for a second, as she took in her surroundings. All around her was an endless expanse of sand dunes, and a small road leading to a massive wall of sandstone in the east horizon, spires and towers showing above the rim. _Must be Nashramae_ , Soraka thought. But she had little time to admire her surroundings, for Azir, Zilean and eventually Sivir all appeared beside her. Azir looked much more relaxed here, and didn't seem to be as bothered by the glaring sun as the other two children, practically basking in the light.

"This is Nashramae. It was recently rebuilt by your adult self after being destroyed," Sivir put a hand on Azir's head, who shook it off with a huff. "But you shall see it for yourself. Come with me. It's not a long walk, so umm, I won't pick you up if you get tired." Soraka silently chuckled at her awkwardness, but she could tell that she was trying. Despite the anxiety radiating from her, Sivir had an aura of confidence and her soul felt sort of… regal. Like her maker. She had started walking forward, glancing back from behind her shoulder, so Soraka followed.

Azir walked in front of her, holding his head high despite his evident fear, and behind her Zilean who had been rather passive, but she sensed a sort of excitement from him too. With a sudden idea, she reached out with both hands. Her right grasped Azir's, and her left held Zilean's. She felt the shock in them, and for a moment, happiness, but it changed.

The sand-haired boy's face turned into a scowl and he pulled away, crossing his arm, and the other boy also broke the connection, stuffing his hands into his pockets. She sensed something from both of them, emotions she couldn't identify. Soraka felt lost. _What did I do wrong? Why couldn't I cheer them up? Helping humankind is my duty..._ Sivir seemed oblivious to the events transpired behind her, only looking back every once in a while to ensure all three are still following. Soraka willed herself to keep moving forward, although the hot sand burnt her feet wrapped only in a pair of white linen shoes and the hot tears burnt her eyes.

* * *

When the unlikely quartet had reached the gate, Sivir looked behind her a last time. All three were there, in varying degrees of sad, afraid and stubborn. She decided to cut them some slack and mind her own business for a while. Truth was, she had no idea how to handle kids. She was a leader, not a parent, and she only "adopted" all three on a fleeting whim. She hasn't lost any of them though, so she couldn't have been doing that bad a job. She shrugged and stepped forward as a guard looked at her. Unlike the top of the massive wall surrounding Nashramae, the gates were guarded by actual people, although they let pretty much anyone in if they spoke Shuriman. Sure enough, a few words later the group was inside the city.

No matter how hard she tried to be unimpressed, Sivir could never shrug off the feeling of awe when walking between the sandstone spires, towers and the countless buildings erected for various purposes. And then there was the massive Sun Disc floating above the grandiose royal palace. The Disc's golden light bathed the palace's roof in a yellow light - it wasn't merely covered by it, but literally made of pure gold, reinforced with magic. Sivir knew that because she was there when the newly ascended Azir created it. She sighed at the memory as the small of her back itched from the memory. _It's alright. You're alive now, act like it._

"This is the royal palace," she said, turning back. "We'll be living here until you dragonlings turn back into your normal selves." She expected enthusiasm, or even awe. But the three mostly looked like kicked puppies. Azir desperately tried to look dignified, Soraka had obviously been crying and Zilean mostly just sulked in the rear. _Uh oh. What am I supposed to do now? Let's… play it cool. Yeah._ She walked up the stairs, listening to the three pairs of small feet behind her, and approached the gate. Sivir hated how the sand soldiers immediately saluted her and opened the massive wooden door, as if she was empress, but she had to admit it came handy when she needed to urgently talk to him. Which happened exactly once so far.

Once they were inside, they quickly got assigned rooms near the master bedroom, which of course Sivir reserved for herself. As she plopped down to the impossibly soft and regal bed, she sighed. _I'm so not ready for this… But I'm gonna make it through._

* * *

 **AN: This was a slightly shorter chapter than I intended to, I wanted to do the lunch scene too, but my brain is fried, I've got DnD applications to manage, finals to be stressed about but not study for, League to watch/play and writer's blocks to get. I'm very proud of myself for even getting this together. There was also originally a flashback about Sivir witnessing Azir create the Sun Disc and the palace, but halfway through I realized that it didn't really add anything to the story, in itself wasn't going anywhere and a palace made out of gold is a really bad idea. I did save it in my docs just in case.**

 **PSA: next chapter will be really delayed, because of finals and because I have zero idea where to go with the Piltover "family". In the Freljord one, the main focus will be on Seju and Ashe understanding each other and working together, and the Shurima family's focus will be on the individual kids getting over their shit and Sivir's not so spectacular parenting skills. (Seriously, at this point renaming the series League of Worst Parents Ever would be fitting.) With Piltover, I will probably make it about the Zaun Gang's backgrounds, but who knows.**


	6. Jinx, Ekko VS Caitlyn, Vi - Part One

Ekko was carefully examining the steel-grey frame in front of them. It was strange, the unfamiliarity. The white room he'd woken up was nothing like the filthy alleys and abandoned houses - although waking up to Jasmine's yelling was a common occurrence to him - and the people in strange, dress-like clothes were a whole new world to him. Ekko was pretty good at noticing things, so he had tried to get a hold on the conversation between the adults in the infirmary, but there was next to nothing he understood. 'Champions', 'age regression', 'emergency bugfix'. He had ended up tuning the conversation above his head, and turned his attention to the other children, but now he sort of regretted it, as he had no idea what was going on. He sort of recognized the device though now that it was turned on - probably while his thoughts wandered -, it had to do with teleportation. They were going to the other end of the world? No, he deduced after careful examination.

"We're going to Piltover," he stated more than asked, pointing to the sign saying the city's name. The woman with the funny hat looked at him with an odd look, confusion bordering on pleasedness. The hat had gear decorations on it. It was weird.

"Yes," she said with a short nod. " Since I was assigned with your guardianship until the League can fix you, and I live in Piltover, we are indeed going to Piltover." Ekko couldn't really decide if the woman was trying to be condescending or this was her style - reading people was Violet's thing - so he decided not to be offended. "However, I am surprised you can read."

"Hey!" Jasmine protested, anger turning her cheeks as pink as her hair. Ekko smiled as he looked at the girl, he had always liked her personality. It helped that she was also really pretty. "Don't be mean to him! He's very smart, just so you know, he built me a little robot monkey! From scraps!" The pink-haired woman - Ekko still had trouble thinking of the brawny 'enforcer' as her best friend's little sister - laughed.

"Chill, Jinx- I mean Jasmine. Cupcake here wasn't trying to be condescending, she's just really, really bad at being anything else." The blue-haired woman's face reddened in embarrassment.

"Vi!" This sent all three others into a laughing fit. "Anyways, we were just leaving. I want to be home in half an hour, so I can get both of you accommodated before Jayce's arrival. Jasmine, Ekko, line up by the portal." The boy's eyes widened. Portal? He'd never really considered this device bringing them from wherever they were straight to Piltover. It's a massive distance! Tech to do this hadn't existed when he last eavesdropped on scientists. He felt himself almost vibrate in excitement as he took a deep breath, and after Jasmine, stepped through the water-like surface, eyes open and brave. Here I come, Piltover.

* * *

Piltover has never been anything than orderly, practical and efficient. Since everything was constantly built and rebuilt (the latter often thanks to Jinx), making a portal house built near the Town Hall was easy. From what Caitlyn had heard, in most other cities the portal was built outside the city limits for various reasons - warding it off of toxic waste, avoiding magical interference or "upsetting harmony". Caitlyn was still unsure what that last one meant, but Karma had said it with such a conviction she guessed there had to be something to it.

Jayce's and her shared place wasn't far either, a nice twin house downtown. Being the Sheriff of Piltover had its perks. The other house belonged to Vi and on occasion, Janna. She still had yet to understand the relationship between the volatile enforcer and the gentle wind goddess, but they did seem to get along and not like Janna was rowdy or anything like that. That being said, Vi was noisy enough for both of them.

"What's that?" She looked at Ekko, confused and slightly irritated by being interrupted in her thoughts.  
"What do you mean?" she asked, looking out of the car window. All she saw was a couple houses, fences, and trees in the meticulously maintained gardens. Nothing out of the ordinary.

"...that, there's another one!" Ekko pointed again. "The big brown thing that's green on the top!" Oh. Caitlyn's heart sank as he regarded the boy. He grew up in the filthy slums, of course he wouldn't know what it was, but the thought still made her uncomfortable. Children don't deserve to live in Zaun.

"That's a tree, a type of plant," she said simply. She hadn't interacted with children since... ever, now that she thought of it. She didn't know what language to use and how much she should simplify her sentences. She would have to do quite some reading on that if she wanted to do this properly. Thankfully Vi, who also had a frown on her face, seemed to sense her discomfort and stepped in.

"Trees are actually made of wood, but they also have branches and leaves and whatnot. The green stuff is the leaves. Don't eat them." Caitlyn silently raised an eyebrow, but her partner didn't seem to notice. "The green stuff on the ground is called grass, not leaves. They grow in the dirt and they feel soft if cared for correctly. It's also sometimes got dog piss on it." Both of the children laughed at that, but Jinx's face became thoughtful. It looked odd on her so, so young face, just as laughing and smiling looked natural for her. She had heard that seeing smiling children triggers the reward centre of the brain, but not that she disliked the satisfaction. _If someone told me a year ago, damn even yesterday, that I'm going to raise children who were my former enemies, and I'm going to look forward to it, I would have laughed. And here I am. Strange world we live in._

* * *

Vi was honestly having a field day. The kids were fun, always asking questions and being excited about a goddamn tree, and after they got over gawking at Caitlyn's house, they were more than happy to claim it. By a miracle, only one cup had been broken, and that was when Jinx tripped over her own feet while holding it. She was a good sport about it, though, just laughed and then offered to clean it up, but of course Cupcake wasn't going to let her anywhere near broken glass. For once, Vi agreed with her. The enforcer looked at the pink-haired girl thoughtfully while she was prancing around, playing... something while Ekko went to explore the house. She was so different from her adult self, insane and only looking to blow things up. Even her appearance changed, as if her hair and eyes... switched. _Why did you change so much, 'sister'?_

She also had a hard time getting used to that thought, honestly. She had always felt a strange, familiar feeling when talking to her, as if they had known each other, but she wouldn't have thought in her wildest dream that they were _related_. Especially with Jinx being the older sister. In her adult form, she looked what, fourteen? It was bizarre, as if her entire world had turned upside down. Well, she just had to power through this and get to the bottom of this whole actually-cute-girl-turning-mad-bomber thing before the Institute found the cure to whatever caused them to revert to children. Also, she realized with a start, she could finally get herself filled in with the details of her childhood, the years her brain drew a blank on. She almost felt guilty for being happy Jinx - no, Jasmine or whatever she called herself - became a kid. Almost. Kid Jasmine was absolutely adorable.

"-had to run because the entire thing was collapsing. It was so scary and exciting!" Speaking of which, apparently Jasmine had been talking to her for the past probably ten minutes. She hadn't noticed Vi wasn't paying attention though, and continued to ramble on. "We got the supplies though, and Zoli recovered within a week." Vi was about to open her mouth - though she had no idea what she was gonna say, yet - when the pink-haired girl continued. "You were there too, Violet! It was your very first mission! You were scared and held my hand when you could, but nobody laughed, because they knew I would protect you!" She puffed her chest with the widest smile Vi's ever seen. The woman chuckled and ruffled Jasmine's hair.

"I don't remember that mission, kiddo, but I'm sure it was awesome. And good for Zoli!" Whoever that was. "Did I go on more missions than that one?" The girl's eyes lit up.

"Of course! We went on more than I could count! You were real good once you stopped being afraid. Like, Ekko said what we need and I looked out for guards, and we got what we needed! We were the best team in the gang!" She was about to launch into another story when the doorknob turned. Vi froze. Cait was in the kitchen, making cocoa if her nose wasn't mistaken, and Ekko was audibly rummaging around upstairs. Janna rarely used the door and she never actually entered Cait's half. Which meant... A massive shit-eating grin spread on her face and she ducked behind the opening door. This is going to be golden.

* * *

Jasmine was elated. One day she was running from the chem-barons they had stole from on the filthy streets of Zaun and now she was in a very nice-looking house, being looked after by her now-adult sister Violet and her friend Cat-something. Cat was a cute nickname, and it sort of fit the woman, but Jasmine liked Hat Lady better. After all, she had a hat and wasn't a cat. Jasmine liked cats, though. Not the scrawny, feral strays that lived on the streets of Zaun, but the fluffy kitties some of the richer people kept as companions. Jasmine decided that she wanted a cat.

She turned to share this wish with Violet, but the door opened and all cat-related thoughts flew straight out from Jasmine's mind. Was the surprise person an enemy or a friend? Since no alarms went off - and Jasmine was sure that a place this nice would have lots of alarms - she assumed it was a friend and she eased the defensive posture she hadn't realized she'd slipped into, smiling to greet the man that stepped in. He was only wearing a white shirt and a pair of jeans, but he looked very good in them. He also had a large messenger bag, and two full grocery bags. Jasmine had never seen this much food in one place, she could only stare at the man in awe. Just how rich was he? And why wasn't he wearing fancy clothes if he was? The man was also staring at her in confusion, and Jinx remembered that she was supposed to introduce herself.

"Hi! My name is Jasmine, Jasmine Minx. And I'm with Hat Lady and my sister Violet here. I wasn't here before, I was at the Institute of something, it isn't actually called the Institute of Something, that would be a weird name, I just can't remember. I'm not good with names, but I'll try to remember, and Ekko will always help me. He's also here, somewhere," she paused for a second to look around, "but he isn't here right now. He's good with names and remembering things, so if you need to know something, just ask him, okay? Oh, after saying my name, I'm supposed to ask your name, but I told you my name a long time ago. Can I still ask it? Hat Lady gets all weird when I call her that, I just can't remember her real name, it's Cat-something, but I can't call her Cat because she's not a cat, duh. But Violet gets weird too when I say her name, and Violet is her real name, so maybe people in Piltover are weird with names? Are you weird with names? What's your name?"

Jasmine grinned, she was proud of herself for having gotten out the whole thing in one breath. Well, two breaths, but that didn't matter. The man just stood there, petrified, and he let out a squeaking noise that Jasmine didn't think was his name. She'd heard of a race of bird people whose names were weird little sounds, but that was because they couldn't speak. People can speak, so they have names. Right? She was about to ask when she heard laughing and Violet almost fell out from behind the door. She was laughing so hard she could barely breathe, much less speak. The man's face turned bright red, and he didn't say anything either. Jasmine was confused. What was going on? Did she say something funny? Or was the man dressed funny? Cat-something Hat Lady, having probably heard the commotion, appeared too to stare at the trio in confusion.

"That was fucking gold," Violet said after she'd recovered from her laughing fit. "Gears, Cupcake, you should have seen Jayce's face when Jas' greeted him. And that sound... He legit squeaked. Shame I didn't have a recorder here." So the man's name was Jayce. Good to know. Jasmine stored that information for later, although she wasn't sure she'd remember it. Jayce just held up his hands in a T-shape, still confused and red-faced.

"Okay, let's stop for a quick second and someone tell me who this little motor mouth is and what is she doing here, stat." Hat Lady sighed and turned back.

"It's a long story and half the street doesn't necessarily have to know. Close the door, put the groceries in the fridge and sit down. Jasmine, can you go get Ekko? I made you both cocoa." Jasmine's face brightened. She had only drunk cocoa once before, it fell off a truck heading towards Piltover. It was more delicious than anything she'd ever had. She immediately started running, and then screeched to a halt when she realized she had zero idea where Ekko was. Closing her eyes for a second, she listened around. Ekko had always said her senses were the sharpest in the gang. Hat Lady, Violet and Jayce chatting. Cocoa bubbling in a pot. A car running by the open door. A box slamming shut upstairs. Her mouth split into a grin as she resumed running. Bingo.

* * *

Jayce's head was reeling as he slowly sipped her coffee.

"So let me get this straight," he said slowly. "The kids drinking cocoa in the other room are Ekko and Jinx, but they were de-aged due to a malfunction on the Rift because of course if magic shit goes wrong, it's the summoners' fault." Caitlyn and Vi nodded, completely serious. Gears, they were actually telling the truth. "And you two agreed to look after them because why exactly? And why couldn't you bother to at least ask me?" Caitlyn had the decency to blush at least. _Breathe, Jayce. There's no point in blowing up at them._ He took a deep breath, trying to compose himself.

"The High Councilor personally assigned us to these two," Caitlyn explained. "They don't exactly have any other relatives and hell if we'll let them run wild in Zaun. Or anywhere else." That made sense at least.

"And of course Jinx, or Jasmine as she calls herself, has to be Vi's sister, because why fucking not," he buried his face in his palms. _And I thought my daily quota of crazy was met when that entropy reverser disappeared in front of my eyes._

"I know it's a lot to take in," Vi said, "but look at the bright side. As long as Jasmine is here as a kid, she won't be causing any trouble as Jinx. That's a huge breather for the Wardens. And when she turns back, we can maybe reform her or something, right?"

"If she turns back," Jayce corrected. "There are a lot of words I could describe the summoners of the League with, and I don't want to say half of them in front of you ladies," Vi snorted, "or at least in front of you, Cait, but competent is not among those words. For all I know, they might stay in this... state forever and we'll have to actually, I don't know, raise them." Mother of gears. A year ago Jayce had been a happy bachelor, working fourteen hours on a short day, drinking late with his friends and bringing home any girl that had caught his fancy. And now he was in a stable relationship with the sheriff of the Wardens and about to have to raise two children who had been his city-state's enemies the day before. He was so royally screwed.

"...ce? Jayce? I think we broke him, Cupcake." Jayce blinked. He'd been so lost in his silent panic attack he hadn't noticed Ekko returning to the kitchen, empty mugs in hand.

"Are you okay, mister?" the boy asked, worry etched on his face. Jayce took a deep breath and put on a confident smile, not unlike the times he had to present a half-finished mess to the board as the next incarnation of the wheel. He just hoped his bullshitting skills would be well-honed enough to deceive the kids into believing he had the situation under control.

"I'm good," he grins. "Just caught by surprise, that's all. Seeing... my deputies as children is rather entertaining." Why did Vi have to lie about this? This will one hundred percent sure come back to bite all of them in the ass. "So, how's the weather down there?" Ekko scrunched his nose up in confusion, but a new voice rang in the doorway, accompanied by bouncing pink pigtails and a beaming smile.

"It's raining! And it's all wet and stuff! Can we go outside to play?" Jayce blinked, raining and going outside were two things he rarely connected in his mind. That being said, he had literally no idea what was going on in the children's minds. Or children's minds in general. Especially psycho-criminal-turned-children's minds.

"No," he said. "It's raining. You could get cold or something. And you don't even have Wellington boots." Shit, they're going to have to buy clothes for the kids. Cait and he had been saving up to repaint the walls, but apparently that's not going to happen. Jayce sighed. Who invented children anyways? Could have done a better job.

"No playing outside today, but tomorrow we'll go clothes shopping for you," Cait declared, apparently having gone through the same train of thought he had. "And then we'll enroll you to school." The world went out of sync for a brief second, the world shaking and speaking in muted tones, as if he was underwater. Jayce stood up, pressing his palm against the table to keep himself steady.

"I just remembered I left a pretty important prototype in the lab," he said, putting on a sheepish grin to mask his weak voice. "Be right back." He picked up his messenger bag, the prototype cellular device securely inside, and not bothering with an umbrella, stepped outside. Jayce kept his steps quick but steady, smiling at passing people out of habit, but as soon as he rounded the corner, he looked around to see if anyone's following him and started running at full speed, not even caring about the direction, as long as it was away.

* * *

 **A/N: Poor Jayce. Poor practically everyone. Also, I'm not dead, yet. I just haven't had any motivation to write this fic. Just a heads up: since in the break my writing skills have actually improved, I'm probably going to make a major revision of the fic, namely making chapters longer and putting in scenes I've cut, as well as fixing writing issues, cleaning up Author's Notes and the like. Of course this might happen tomorrow or around Christmas, depending on my motivation.**


End file.
